Drawn To You (GirlxGirl)

Part 23

Allie's P.O.V

I heard a knock at the door and jumped before I composed myself as much as possible. I took a deep breath, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand and walked into the hallway.

I opened the door, and there they were—Lola and Casey, my best friends, both with worried expressions on their faces.

"Hey, you," Lola said softly, stepping forward to pull me into a hug. "What's going on? You sounded so upset on the phone".

Casey leaned in behind her, peering over Lola's shoulder. "You look like crap, Al," she said bluntly, though her eyes were full of concern.

I laughed, a short, bitter sound. "Thanks, Case," I muttered, stepping aside to let them in.

They walked into the living room, and I noticed their eyes flick over to the disheveled duvet and pillow still on the sofa, the stark evidence of last night's fight. I felt a lump form in my throat again. I knew I needed to talk to them; I needed them to help me make sense of this mess.

Both of them sat down on the sofa opposite me and looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to explain why I had asked them over.

"Allie, what's happened? Is it Mark?" Lola asked, putting a hand on my knee reassuringly.

"No.. I mean, yes" I sighed. "Ugh I don't know" I told them truthfully, running my hands through my dishevelled hair.

"Not being funny Al, but I bailed on a hot date to be here" Casey chimed in sarcastically while Lola rolled her eyes at her. "So let's get to it".

Casey's sense of humour wasn't for everyone, but I loved it. I let out a small huffy laugh before looking up at my two best friends with watery eyes.

"Mark and I had a fight. He wanted to talk about having a baby and I told him I wasn't ready" I started.

"Well that seems fair, you haven't even finished university yet" Lola spoke her thoughts out loud.

"That's what I told him, but he wouldn't listen and started banging on about how a baby will give me purpose and how I should think about how good I've got it with him" there was anger spilling out with my words.

"What a dick" Casey sighed.

"Casey please, language!" Lola scolded her. "But yes, she has a point Allie".

I felt a little comforted by their reactions, but I knew there was more I needed to share. I drew a shaky breath. "That's not all I'm upset about".

Both of them raised their eyebrows curiously, waiting for me to continue.

"Do you remember Jessie?" I asked, my voice barely more than a whisper.

Lola blinked. "Jessie? From the bar that night? The painter?"

I nodded, feeling my cheeks flush. "Yeah, her."

Casey leaned in closer, still confused. "What about her?"

I bit my lip, trying to gather my thoughts. "We... she and I... I kissed her," I finally said, my words coming out in a rush.

Both of their eyes widened in shock, and for a moment, there was nothing but stunned silence.

"Sooo many questions.." Casey said to herself and rubbed her temples, trying to process the information.

"Oh Allie it's okay, we all have embarrassing kiss stories" Lola said sympathetically and squeezed my hand.

"What? No she.. she kissed me back" I told her.

"Allie Stevens you dark horse, I didn't know you had it in ya" Casey winked, gaining a tearful giggle from me.

"But I don't understand, does this mean that you.." Lola thought about her next words carefully, "are you.. gay?".

"No! I mean I don't know what it makes me.. all I know is that when we kissed, it was the most alive I've felt in a long time" I said, letting a small smile grace my lips at the memory.

Lola pulled me into another hug and I felt a huge feeling of relief wash over me.

"Hey, it's okay. We're here for you, no matter what." She whispered.

Casey nodded. "I get it, Jessie's hot".

"Mark doesn't know. And after we kissed I ran out and now.." I said, handing my phone to Casey and they both looked at Jessie's text. "Now she wants to talk and I don't know what to do".

"Well you can't ignore her forever Allie, you still technically work for her" Lola said, always being the sensible one.

I nodded slowly and sighed.

Before I could protest, they both pulled me up from the sofa, dragging me toward the door.

"Where are we going?" I asked, letting them guide me towards Lola's car.

"For a drive, you need out of this house" Lola smiled.

We drove around the city for a while, talking and laughing and talking some more and my anxiety had settled a great deal. But then the car rolled to a stop outside of an apartment building I didn't recognise.

"Where are we?" I asked, feeling a fresh wave of confusion.

Casey grinned at me from the passenger seat. "Outside Jessie's apartment. I text her from your phone to arrange that chat she wants to have".

I froze, my heart hammering in my chest. "Are you serious? It's past midnight, I can't just show up like-"

"Relax, she agreed to it!" Casey interrupted, handing me my phone to confirm that Jessie had in fact agreed to this and she had sent her address. "Number 7.. now get going".

My stomach twisted into knots, but I knew they were right. I couldn't avoid her forever. I could just apologise, tell her it won't happen again and then we can all move on from this mess.

I took a deep breath and slowly, hesitantly, stepped out of the car. The air was cool against my skin, and I felt my legs trembling as I made my way toward the entrance of Jessie's building.

I stood in front of the door, looking up at the number 7 on it. I hovered my clenched fist over the dark green door, feeling like time had slowed to a crawl.

My heart pounded so loudly I was sure everyone could hear it. I knocked gently twice and waited, my breath catching in my throat, fear and hope battling in my chest.

And after what felt like a lifetime, the door opened.